Delta Power Equipment Corp. bringing operation to Anderson County

ANDERSON COUNTY - Stanley Black & Decker has signed an agreement to sell its Delta brand, and a renamed version of Delta will set up its headquarters in Anderson.

Delta Power Equipment Corporation, a maker of woodworking tools, will establish its new operations in a 50,000-square-foot building near the Anderson Regional Airport. Officials said the move amounts to a nearly $4 million investment that will create 40 jobs.

Tim Perra, director of global communications for Stanley Black & Decker, confirmed Friday night that his company had signed an agreement this week to sell the Delta brand. But Perra said in a brief interview with the Independent Mail he could not provide further details about the deal, and referred questions to Bryan Whiffen, who will be Delta Power Equipment's chief executive officer.

Whiffen has been a senior leader at Techtronic Industries North America Inc., a worldwide manufacturer of tools that also has a base in Anderson. Whiffen did not return messages seeking comment Friday.

It remains unclear whether the Delta brand was sold outright to the new corporation, or whether the brand was sold to another company that owns the spinoff corporation.

Delta Power Equipment Corporation will invest more than $3.6 million in Anderson County and expects to create 40 new jobs, according to the South Carolina Department of Commerce.

"The new facility will allow Delta Power Equipment to continue its tradition of providing top-notch woodworking equipment to our customers," Whiffen said in a prepared statement released by the state Department of Commerce. "We look forward to establishing our new operations in Anderson County.

"South Carolina provided us with the positive business environment and market access we were looking for when deciding where to locate. We appreciate all the support we have received from state and local officials."

Delta Power Equipment will put its corporate offices and its manufacturing operations in the former Famous Craft Boats building on Airport Road. The power-tool company expects to start hiring workers at the end of this month and to start its operations in Anderson by early April.

"Delta Power Equipment Corp. has a long history as a leading producer of woodworking tools, and we are pleased to have them as a part of South Carolina's business community," state Commerce Secretary Joe Taylor said in a prepared statement.

Burriss Nelson, Anderson County's economic development director, said he is thankful for every job-creation announcement in a county that has recently struggled with an average unemployment rate above 10 percent.

"We are thrilled about this," he said. "And we are hopeful that it has the opportunity to grow into something bigger."

Kara Borie, a spokeswoman for the Department of Commerce, said the state will provide job-creation credits for the company.

Borie said the company would get rebates on a portion of the state withholding taxes collected on employees' wages.

Lawrence Campbell, the county's assistant director of economic development, said he had been working with Delta Power Equipment officials for about four months to find a site and bring the company to the Upstate.

Interim administrator Rusty Burns said Anderson County staff worked alongside council Chairman Tommy Dunn and council member Tom Allen on New Year's Eve to finish the details of the deal.

"This has been an outstanding week in economic development for Anderson County," Burns said Friday. "With Anderson County's inclusion in a foreign-trade zone (service area) and now a new company coming, we have things to be excited about."